Impressive performance by a Dodge

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Hanno Spoelstra

Was there any "hard" under that mud? Or is the car that light it actually floats through the mud on those skinny's?

It's an interesting question Hanno, I've always marvelled at the off-road capabilities of these old vintage cars, especially in mud. Contrary to popular belief they're actually quite heavy, the Dodge seen in this footage is specified at 2810 lbs. The fast motion in these old silent movies tends to make them appear lightweight, and the reason they tip over so easily is the high C of G. If you watch the two blokes rolling it over you can see it rotates around the motor, which virtually stays at the same level. Also the body height allows them to exert much more strength, and I notice it balances nicely on the point of the roof and the mudguard.

On the question of traction I agree with Lynn - there's always "hard" under the mud, it's just a question of depth. The great advantage of skinny wheels is they slice through the mud like a knife through butter, rather than having to force it out to the sides like a wide modern tyre. That means there's very little rolling resistance to overcome, and the much smaller contact area with the "hard" surface below provides much higher tyre loading, which greatly increases friction - ie. traction. Hence you really don't need a limited slip diff, they've only become necessary with the advent of much wider tyres.

Of course, the "skinny wheel principle" doesn't apply on sand, because there's no "hard" below!

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